Taxes and Assessment

February 16, 2020

Mr. Russ Hotsenpiller 

Chief Administrative Officer

Islands Trust

Office 200, 1627 Fort Street

November 16th 2018.
Communication re Foreign Buyers Tax as it applies to Saturna Island.
Saturna Island Rate Payers and Residents (SIRRA) has been moved to raise awareness
of the issue of application of the Foreign Buyers Tax to Saturna.
As you may know the Gulf Islands were subsequently exempted from the
Speculation Tax brought in under the February 2 2018 provincial budget. However, a
remaining consequence to the February budget that continues to affect the Gulf

S SIRRA
PO Box 27
Saturna BC V0N 2Y0
info@sirra.ca

Dear Ms. Hage and Mr. Dow,

Thank you for your inquiry and the opportunity to respond to your questions. I have 

provided below information that I trust will assist with understanding 2015 property 

assessments on Saturna and Mayne Islands.

BC Assessment produces annual market value assessments for approximately 

2,000,000 properties in the province of BC including approximately 146,000 within the 

Capital Region. There are 680 properties on Saturna Island and 1,392 properties on . 

Dear Ms. Fair, Our combined associations represent residential and commercial property owners and renters on Mayne and Saturna islands and have been approached by concerned landowners of large parcels of undeveloped or underdeveloped land (+25 acres). Almost all of these properties have seen their assessments increase (many by more than 25% from the previous year) at a time when the assessed and actual value of properties on these islands has declined significantly. Our members would like to gain an understanding of BC Assessment’s approach to evaluating property values.

Property Taxes 101: Part III
1
Saturna Island Fire Protection Society Mandate
The Saturna Island Fire Protection Society (SIFPS), incorporated in 1994, has two
purposes: to provide fire protection services and to provide emergency response
services to the residents of Saturna Island.

Saturna Island Property Owners Association
Property Taxes 101: Part II
1
The
Islands
Trust
Mandate
The Province enacted the Islands Trust Act in 1974 with the objective to protect the
unique character and environment of the islands in the Salish Sea. The Act gives the
Islands Trust, a unique form of local government, the following powers and
responsibilities:
• Official community plans
• Zoning and rural land use bylaws
• Subdivision bylaws
• Development permits

aturna Island Property Owners Association
1
Property
Taxes
101:
Part
I
Introduction
One of SIPOA’s priorities coming out of our members’ survey last fall was to take a
close look at our property taxes – what they are and what we get for them. We will
prepare a series on property taxes, digging deeper into the details as we go.
This is the first installment, which provides an overview of how our property taxes have
changed over the past 10 years.
What
Have
Your
Property
Taxes